"How I Met Your Mother" season 8 continued Monday, Jan. 21, with episode 14, "Ring Up," which introduced a new girl in Ted's (Josh Radnor) life, but she had a connection to Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) which put an end to him begging his friend to sleep with her.
Overall, it was an amusing "HIMYM" episode, though Marshall (Jason Segel) and Lily's (Alyson Hannigan) storyline was weaker than the other two. Yes, having a baby may change a couple's sex life, and while the items they each created a fantasy around—Ted's wrist cuff and Lily's suburban mom jeans—and the fantasies themselves were humorous, they’ve had better storylines for them, especially with Marshall being allergic to the cuff.
Meanwhile, Ted's wrist cuff landed him a date with a 20-year-old, and Barney, going through detox from his years of one-night stands, begged him to sleep with her even as Ted wanted to end things since they had nothing in common. In fact, what she liked so much about him was that he was older (though she saw him as much older than he really was). They did find common ground in "Star Wars," but after they slept together—and after Barney disturbingly commented on her photo as the reveal we knew was coming came—it was confirmed that Ted's new young girlfriend was Carly (played by Ashley Benson from "Pretty Little Liars"), Barney's half-sister. So he overreacted, sent Ted a possum, and invited him over for cigars, which turned out to be his way of luring Ted in to marry Carly. Ted was able to change his mind by pointing out that his detox was done after his comments about cheap, meaningless one night stands.
Finally, Robin (Cobie Smulders) learned that she essentially became invisible with her engagement ring on. Before, she didn't have to pay for coffee, bagels, or apparently rent, but with the ring on, she was essentially invisible. That included a sequence where she took the ring off, was able to order beers, and then turned invisible again once she put the ring back on. But in the end, Marshall and Lily explained that it didn't matter. Nothing beat the rush of that special someone looking at you, the world dulling around you so that person shined brighter. That was love. That was how it was for them, and they knew that was true for Barney and Robin as well. And it was when Barney joined them. Besides, Robin also solved her problem of getting a drink: "I know a way that's going to last forever," she said, turning to Barney.
"How I Met Your Mother" season 8 airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBS. What did you think of "Ring Up"?
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